Pure Inspiration

Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi – 39
Over time, as I met him on successive occasions, he gradually
introduced more explicit teachings on meditation, and there emerged
from his talks a clearer picture of his methodology. He stressed that in
the early stages of practice one should focus on tackling the two major
hindrances, sensual craving and ill will. The remedy he prescribed for
the first (following the suttas) is the perception of the impurity of the
body (asubhasaññā); the remedy for the second, loving-kindness
(mettā). He especially praised loving-kindness and spoke about how it
can lead to higher and higher states of purification. Though in his
personal cultivation he apparently made much use of mindfulness of
breathing, he seemed to regard the breath meditation as a more
advanced practice that could only unfold its potential when the
groundwork had been prepared by the meditations on bodily impurity
and loving-kindness.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, a hip injury that he had incurred
years earlier re-emerged and caused him great pain when walking
long distances. This made it hard for him to continue his wandering
and he was therefore compelled to spend long periods at Vajirarama.
Here he became much more accessible, not only to other monks, but to
lay people living in and around Colombo. To protect his seclusion, he
posted a notice on the door of his room stating that he would see
visitors only between certain hours (I think between 6 and 8 pm, but
my memory of the hours is hazy). It was not unusual to see people
waiting outside his room to meet him. They would come either as
individuals, as couples, or in small family groups, seeking to tap his
wisdom and blessings. I usually stayed in a room close to his, where I
could hear his resonant voice rising and falling in a steady, inspiring
rhythm for hours. During the day, however, from early morning till